


Why Are You Crying?

by hereismyhappyplace



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: A life time of Hajime caring about Tooru, Character Death, Death from Old Age, Light Angst, M/M, Time Skips
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-17
Updated: 2017-11-17
Packaged: 2019-02-03 16:21:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12751857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hereismyhappyplace/pseuds/hereismyhappyplace
Summary: It starts the very first time they meet, Hajime finding a little boy sitting all alone and crying quietly to himself."Why are you crying?" Hajime asks.





	Why Are You Crying?

**Author's Note:**

> Just posting stuff from my blog. I accept prompts and write stories based off of them so feel free to send me some! ♡
> 
> [You can find me here](https://here-is-my-happy-place.tumblr.com/)

It starts the very first time they meet, Hajime finding a little boy sitting all alone and crying quietly to himself.

“Why are you crying?” Hajime asks him, watching as his eyes flew open wide in surprise, like he didn’t expect anyone to find him here.

The boy rubs a chubby hand over his eyes, “…no-no one wants to play with me.”

Hajime looks him over curiously, watching big crocodile tears roll down rosy cheeks, snot leaking heavily from the boys nose.

“You can come play with me then if you want.” He offers after brief debate, “Only if you want to catch bugs though.”

The kid’s head jerks up immediately, nodding eagerly when Hajime’s words register and standings follow after him while trying to wipe the mess off his face.

“I’m Hajime by the way.” Hajime introduces, handing over his bug carrier for the boy to hold.

The kid smiles big and he can see that one of his front teeth are missing.

“I’m Tooru.” Tooru tells him happily.

  
\---

The next time it happens is when they are riding bikes together. They are little older and much better friends, enough that Tooru screams when Hajime goes tumbling down a hill with his bike.

His arm feels weird when his head finally stops spinning and when Tooru gets to him, he takes one look and shouts, “Don’t move!”

Quickly he runs back up the hill and comes back with the store owner they buy popsicles from all the time. She calls his mom and when his mom gets there, Hajime gets taken to the hospital. Tooru goes with them and cries when they get told Hajime’s arm is broken.

“Why are you crying?” Hajime asks, “You’re not the one who broke his arm.”

“Because you’re hurt and it’s my fault because I was the one who wanted to ride bikes.” He sobs messily into his fists.

“That’s a stupid reason.” Hajime tells him, reaching out his good hand for Tooru to hold.

When his arm gets better, he makes Tooru ride bikes with him again so he knows everything is good.

\---

In middle school it happens when Oikawa smacks a serve straight into the back of his head and it ends up giving him a concussion.

He wakes up in the nurse's office, but he’s not the only one there. Oikawa’s looking down hard at his lap, as if to willing himself not to cry.

A single tear rolls down his cheek and Hajime asks, “Why are you crying?”

“Because my serve is awful and you got hurt because of it.”

“Well that’s a shitty reason.”

Oikawa balks, standing up from his chair and glaring down at him with misty eyes, tears running down both cheeks when he blinks too many times.

Hajime snorts, ignoring the theatrics, “Compared to the headache I got from hitting that thick head of yours? This is nothing. I wouldn’t even call this getting hurt.”

“But your head—!”

“-will be fine. Just like your serve is fine. Stop worrying about things you can’t control, dumbass.”

Oikawa sniffles, “That’s mean Iwa-chan…”

He lets Oikawa hold his hand then too.

\---

In high school it’s when they lose against Ushijima again, after beating Kageyama’s team.

They gym is supposed to be empty because coach told them to go home. He didn’t make them stay so they could review over the match with their usual lecture, just let them pack up their stuff so they’d get a good night's rest and be fresh for tomorrow’s practice.

The gym isn’t empty though and Hajime knew it wouldn’t be. Even from outside he can hear the familiar skid of rubber soles and the sound of perfectly aimed shots slamming against the floor.

He steps in and Oikawa is right where he expects him to be, volleyball in hand, in setting position, facing directly across the court with tears streaking down both cheeks.

Hajime walks up to him, gently taking his shaking wrist to keep him from serving again.

“Why are you crying?” He asks him softly.

It takes several minutes before Oikawa’s willing to answer.

“…because I’m supposed to be the best and I failed you.”

Hajime doesn’t miss the way he says _you_ and not _the team_ .

He tugs his wrist, still being overly gentle when he makes  the ball fall out of his hand so he can bring an arm up to pull his best friend into a hug.

“You did your best and that’s all I could ever ask for.” He murmurs against his temple sincerely.

“My best wasn’t enough though,” he spits out spitefully, “nothing I do is ever enough—“

Hajime grips his face with both hands, cutting him off short  when he stares him directly in the eye.

“You are enough.” He tells him, “you are enough, have always been enough, and will always be enough for me.”

Oikawa’s face twists; he ends up shoving it into Hajime’s neck with a sob.

They stay like that for a while.

\---

Before college, it happens at the train station. Tooru’s sniffles are there before they even make it through the turnstiles.

“Why are you crying?” Hajime murmurs to his boyfriend as he helps direct them safety through the traffic of people, arriving on time at the platform Tooru’s train will station at.

Tooru won’t look up at him, bubbling pitifully to the ground, “I-I’m going to miss you, Iwa-chan…”

Hajime tussles his hair, “I’m visiting in two weeks you baby.”

“That’s too long...” Tooru whispers, fist clenching in his shirt like it actually pains him and Hajime feels something stir in his chest.

He can’t kiss Tooru like he want here, too many people and too many prying eyes, but he still pulls the big oaf to him for a watery hug.

“Two years and we can live together.” Hajime promises. “We will figure it out until then.”

 

While watching Tooru’s crying face pull away slowly on the train, that promise becomes a goal he well intends to keep.

\---

In their 20s, Tooru’s shitfaced and Hajime’s trying to wrestle a beer out of his hand.

“Who even gave you this much to drink?” He growls, even more agitated when Tooru blinks up at him stupidly, like he’s just noticing him there for the first time.

The drunk immediately bursts into tears upon recognizing Hajime’s face.

Hajime finds himself floundering and trying to support seventy two kilos with one arm.

“Why are you crying, dumbass?!” He shouts, expertly sliding Tooru’s beer to a random table and catching the idiot in both arms as he slumps over more.

Tooru’s mashes his face against his shoulder, cheek sliding against him until his head flops into his neck. He sits up long enough to look at Hajime with big, watery eyes.

“Because Iwa-chan is so... _perfect,_ he’s so wonderful and reaaaaally handsome. Like a, like a sex god or somethin...I don’t know, I just really love him okay? I’m so lucky...he’s just the bestest everything ever.” Tooru throws both arms up, happiness obvious.

 He gasps suddenly when he blinks at Hajime again, looking at him with wide eyes, “Don’t tell him I said that though! He’ll hit me if I say his butt looks delicious in skinny jeans!”

 Hajime can feel a blush burning the tips of his ears.

 “You’re so stupid.” He deadpans for his drunk boyfriend.

 He reaches in his pocket for his phone, flicking the camera app open, “...now can you say that all again?”

 

\---

Hajime brings home a ball of fluff on Tooru’s 32nd birthday. There’s a nice pretty blue bow tied to its collar and Hajime got him all groomed up after picking him up for the shelter, double checking several times to make sure this was the little guy Tooru had been going to see once a week.

He’s late to the birthday party, but that’s fine. Immediately when he walks in, Tooru spies the dog in his arms and immediately starts crying.

Hajime laughs and hands over the pup to the grabby hands reaching for him, “Why are you crying? This is supposed to be a happy day!”

“I’m so happy…!” Tooru blubbers into soft fur, hugging their new dog right against his face.

Hajime’s background for almost a year is Tooru crying while Maru tries to lick away his tears.

  
\---

At 46, Hajime finds a growth underneath his arm and when the doctor checks it out, he tells him it could possibly be cancerous.

Tooru cries constantly; especially the day they are sitting by Hajime’s phone, waiting for the doctor to call him with the test results.

He pulls that snotty mess across his lap, petting across his graying hair gently. He knows it’s been a rough few weeks if Tooru hasn’t kept up with dying his hair.

“Why are you crying?” He asks; he already has the answer, but he can’t help but feel there is a little _more_ to this.

Tooru cries harder when he does, “I can’t—nothing can, not you...can’t happen to you,” he chokes on his tears, burying his face into Hajime’s thigh so the rest comes out partially muffled, “can’t lose you Hajime, I can’t, I can’t I can’t—”

“Shh baby, I know.” He hunches over, shrouding Tooru with his body, leaning his head against his, “Whatever happens, we’ll be fine. Don’t start thinking the worst just yet. I still have a fighting chance.”

The phone rings, Hajime reaches for it immediately. Tooru’s fingers tighten at the hem of his shirt.

He puts in on speaker just so both of them can hear when the doctor says:

“It’s benign.”

 

Tooru doesn’t let him go for the rest of the night, but at least the crying stops.

  
\---

“Now what could you possibly be crying about this time, old man?”

They are in a hospital room; Hajime laid up in bed with a nifty breathing tube up his nose. It’s been years since he was able to breathe this clearly, but it’s also a little annoying because the inside of his nose itches and he can’t do anything to scratch. He also really hates the constant beeping of the heart monitor blaring right above his head.

What he hates most of all though is those slow, fat tears rolling down his Tooru’s old and wrinkly face.

“Don’t call me old man, I’m younger than you.” Tooru tells him knowingly, carding boney finger through his hair—or what’s left of it anyway.

“You’ve held that against me our whole lives.” Hajime accuses and thin lips curl for his effort.

Tooru sniffs, “And I’ll keeping doing so well into the afterlife too.”

Hajime huffs, “That’s something to look forward to.”

Aside for the beeping monitor, the room grows silent.

“Seventy six years huh…” Tooru breaks the quiet with after a good few minutes of nothing but silent hand holding.

Hajime feels exhausted, but he still manages a smile, “The best seventy six years of my life.”

He’d take seventy six more in a heartbeat.

A few more tears roll down Tooru’s cheeks, Hajime wishes he had the strength to wipe them away.

“I’ll wait for you.” He tells him squeezing that hand with his seeping strength. “Wherever I end up, I’ll be waiting just for you like always. But don’t try rush after me, ya hear? I’ll kick your ass if you do.”

“Always my big brute huh, Iwa-chan?” Tooru teases.

Hajime laughs, breath wheezing into his chest, “Haven’t heard that one in years.”

“It still suits you.” They laugh together this time.

Another comfortable round of silence fills the room. Tooru raises his hand once to kiss his fingers. He tells Hajime that the green hospital gown really isn’t his color and they both start laughing again.

Hajime blinks once, then again. His eyes feel heavy. He looks to Tooru again, “Will you keep smiling for me? Your smile has always been my favorite.

Instead of saying yes, Tooru just smiles, a few tears dripping of his chin.

“I love you.” Tooru tells him, leaning his old, shaky body over to give his forehead a kiss.

Hajime smiles, eyes crinkling in the corners “I love you too.”

A few of his own tears slip down the corners of his eyes. Tooru thumbs them away gently.

“Why are you crying?” Tooru asks him, but he never gets to hear the answer.

  
  
-

It’s a few minutes later when the beeping finally stops.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, I made myself cry while writing this and I haven’t been to bed because I stayed up to finish this. I think I might sleep now.


End file.
